Croud at the #BeAGameChanger Awards3 min read

Nearly 10 months ago, I pitched an idea to our client, Sealskinz. A concept that was aimed at engaging an audience through content targeted at their values and their interests. 10 months, 3 films and countless tweets later, we reached over a million people and subsequently were nominated for the Barclays Imagery of the Year award at the #BeAGameChanger awards for the Women’s Sports Trust. And last night, was awards night.

A few hundred invitees from Olympians, athletes, business types and politicians were packed into a glamorous looking room at London’s Rambert Dance Company studios on South Bank. After a few opening speeches from the Women’s Sports Trust founders, it was on to the awards.

With a host of categories from Sporting Role Model and Ambassador of Women’s Sport to NGB of the Year and Media Initiative of the Year, there were plenty of gongs to be awarded. Some of the winners included Andy Murray, the BBC, Park Run and Claire Balding.

Eventually, the moment came and we were on to the Barclays Imagery of the Year award. Our #IAmEndurance campaign had been selected as one of three finalists in the category; Alex Rotas Photography and the Adidas Here To Create campaign were to prove stiff competition.

Before the winner was announced, the second film in the series featuring the moving story of Traharn Chidley was shown to an audience so quiet you could hear a pin drop. Traharn’s film told her story of using the great outdoors and mountain biking to escape an abusive and violent relationship. It was the most successful film of the three, with over 200,000 views and reaching just under half a million people. From the standing ovation at the end, it was clear who everyone in the room wanted to take the award. To the somewhat, dismay of the audience, Adidas were announced as winners of the category and you could just feel a sigh of disappointment sweep across the star-studded room. As Adidas were unable to attend the awards and to the delight of the audience, both Traharn and Alex Rotas were invited up on stage for an interview.

Despite the loss, it was an incredible evening and judging by the response on social media and the amount of people wanting to chat to us at the end, I feel it’s safe to say we came away with the moral victory. Thank you very much to the Women’s Sports Trust, all the sponsors and of course, everyone that voted.

I’m proud to have created and worked on a campaign that utilises content to go beyond links (of which there were many), beyond interactions but a campaign that actually changed lives, and that I can prove. Sandy, Traharn and Claire, you are all inspirations and I thank you for being part of the campaign and sharing your amazing stories.

This may not have been a search industry award, but it was an award nominated and voted for by the very audience we targeted. For this content marketing geek, that’s an award in itself.